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Wenger highlights importance of Man City tie

The Premier League crown may well be Leicester City’s for the 2015/16 season, but Arsene Wenger feels Arsenal can not afford to let up ahead of Sunday’s important visit to Etihad to face Manchester City.

The Gunners are still yet to cement Champions League qualification ahead of next season, however if they beat chasers Man City this weekend they will secure third and with that automatic qualification for next seasons European cup.

The odds, thankfully, appear to be in the visitors favour especially after Citys midweek Champions League excursion that saw them pipped to the final by Real Madrid.

“Sunday’s game is still important, even if Leicester are champions today and we are second best,” the Arsenal boss told reporters (via Arsenal.com). “It is still a very important game because part of the responsibility of being professional is to prepare the future. The future of Arsenal Football Club depends on this game.”

Arsenal have several key players away on international duty this summer and Wenger wants to prevent an early return to preseason by avoiding a tiring Champions League double header play-off.

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“There’s a European Championship and there’s a Copa America [in the summer],” he continued. “To get our players back, we made a schedule. It’s absolutely very difficult because the European Championship finishes on July 10.

“If you think that you have to give at least three to four weeks of holiday to the players who go to the end [of the tournament], that means they come back at the beginning of August.

“Our target now is to secure a position in the Champions League next year. If possible, to get second place or at least secure third place. On Sunday we can achieve that. We still have two games, and if we win those two games we will be alright.”

Arsenal still have every chance to catch Tottenham who are suffering with suspensions and injury doubts left, right and centre. They’re beaten and bruised after a disappointing (/hilarious) evening at Stamford Bridge on Monday night.

All Arsenal can do now is dig deep and finish the job with two wins, the rest we will leave up to fate. Manchester City are there for the taking, time to finish the season on a high.